Ohio News

COLUMBUS QUICK FORECAST

• Today: Mostly sunny, very hot, humid afternoon. High 95
• Tonight: Partly cloudy, muggy morning. Low 72
• Tuesday: Mostly sunny, few storms. High 93
• Wednesday: Hot, sticky, scattered p.m. storms. High 94
• Thursday: Partly sunny, steamy, stray storms later. High 93
• Friday: Chance for showers and thunderstorms. High 93

FORECAST DISCUSSION:

Good evening and happy Monday!

With high pressure in charge, the heat continues for the area, and so does our air quality alert.

Today is also an Air Quality Alert Day which means that ozone levels in Central Ohio may rise in the Unhealthy For Sensitive Groups range. this “sensative groups” category includes anyone with respiratory or breathing issues including children, the elderly, anyone with asthma, allergies or COPD. The best action to take if you fall into this category is to should limit your time outdoors, especially doing strenuous activity.

While temperatures remain about 10 degrees above normal, they’re thankfully still off from record breaking territory, which for the next couple of days records sit between 100-105 degrees.

The heat from the day has been paired with a few pop up showers, mostly west of 23. While thunderstorms are not expected to be severe, they will have pockets of heavy rainfall and lightning.

As we start to lose some heat from the day, we’ll decrease the fuel to keep thunderstorms going. However, we won’t catch much of a break from the heat.

We’ll start off Tuesday in the 70s with a few passing clouds. This will set us up to have a higher dew point, which in turn means higher humidity and more of a heat index. When we combine the higher humidity with highs back up in the 90s, the chance for pop-up showers and thunderstorms will increase through the afternoon. Again, these are not expected to be severe, but if you have outdoor plans, you can check in with the NBC4 mobile weather app to find out if those plans will be near lightning strikes.

This pattern of heat, humidity and afternoon pop-ups will be on repeat Wednesday and Thursday. Highs both days will reach the mid 90s with heat driven thunderstorms in the afternoon.

Friday will bring a more widespread chance for thunderstorms as a cold front moves into the area. Despite the name, we won’t catch much relief from the heat. highs on Friday will again reach the low to mid 90s, then become more season, in the mid to upper 80s for the weekend.

Have a great evening!

-Liz

COLUMBUS (WCMH) — Columbus Police have discontinued the high school resource officer program with Columbus City Schools.

The police department announced Monday the 3-year contract with the school district expired on June 30, and there is no new contract in place.

The program employed 20 high school resource officers and two sergeants. The resource officer positions will be eliminated, a department spokesperson said.

Columbus Police Chief Tom Quinlan has provided 70-day notices to these officers and sergeants which is required in the current collective bargaining agreement.

“I have the duty to ensure proper distribution of personnel and without a contract in place, I am required to assign the officers to a position that is operational and essential,” Quinlan said in a statement.

The department has a separate 1-year contact with the Worthington City School District.  One officer is assigned to Worthington Kilbourne High School and will remain in that assignment.

The Columbus City School District released the following statement Monday afternoon:

The Columbus Board of Education announced in June that it is creating a Safe Schools Working Group, which will include a broad range of stakeholders, to evaluate the safety and security program in Columbus City Schools, including the District’s relationship with the Columbus Police Department. The working group, which has yet to be seated, is expected to provide recommendations to the Board of Education in November.

When school is in session and in person, School Resource Officers had been stationed in CCS high school buildings. The District’s initial reopening plans, presented last Tuesday to the Board of Education, call for all CCS high school students to attend school completely remote for at least the first semester of the 2020-2021 school year.

Columbus City Schools

COLUMBUS (WCMH) — Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther and Columbus City Council joined community partners Monday to announce $500,000 to assist the Linden community with exterior home repairs as part of The 614 for Linden collaborative.

The partnership advances the One Linden Community plan to re-imagine the neighborhood.

“I am excited to be investing these funds in Linden where residents will be able to see real, lasting improvements to their homes,” said Mayor Ginther. “Collaboration is the key making change happen, and I am grateful to all of our partners in this important work.”

Healthy Homes, the affordable housing arm of the Healthy Neighborhoods Healthy Families initiative out of Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Community Development for All People, will be the nonprofit collaborative partner to help oversee the exterior home repair program.

Exterior home repair assistance will be available to Linden residents whose families earn up to 65 percent Area Median Income or $54,925 for a family of four. Eligible repairs include windows, siding and roof repair.

Columbus City Council will be taking up the legislation Monday night.

“I am thrilled to see the launch of this program that will be essential to assisting Linden residents maintain their homes for the benefit of the entire neighborhood,” said Councilmember Shayla Favor. “It is critical to maintain the health and safety of our housing stock, and through this partnership with Healthy Families Healthy Homes we will be able to bring this opportunity to some of our residents in greatest need.”

Residents looking to learn more about the program can call 614-355-3639. Healthy Homes will begin taking applications on a rolling basis after the legislation is passed. 

“Linden and Nationwide Children’s Hospital have shared a common bond to provide child health services to the area’s families for more than 25 years. We have served more than 115,000 patients at our Linden Primary Care Center, and our school-based health clinics serve students at Linden McKinley and KIPP,” said Tim Robinson, CEO, Nationwide Children’s. “So we’re proud to deepen our relationship with the Linden community by improving housing through Healthy Homes. We have learned that if we really want to produce best health outcomes for our children, we need to have a positive impact on the environment where our kids are growing up.”

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)– Nationwide Children’s Hospital announced the firing of one of their employees after a video of her saying a racial slur was widely circulated on social media over the weekend.

The video, posted Saturday afternoon to Twitter, shows the woman outside a bar in the University District it what appears to be a verbal altercation with the person recording the video. After saying the n-word the woman is escorted away by Columbus Division of Police officers.

NCH announced Monday the woman was terminated, calling her behavior “extremely troubling, inconsistent with our values.”

“Nationwide Children’s does not tolerate racist behavior or other conduct that insults the dignity of our staff, patients and families. Nationwide Children’s leadership strongly believes racism is a public health crisis that harms children and the community as a whole,” the hospital stated on Facebook.

COLUMBUS (WCMH) — The latest number of COVID-19 cases in the state has been released by the Ohio Department of Health.  

As of July 6, a total of 57,956 (+805) cases were reported in Ohio since the pandemic began, leading to 2,927 (+16) deaths and 8,249 (+77) hospitalizations. There are a presumed 40,813 (+353) recovered cases in Ohio.

The Department of Health adds the data when it is informed of a case or death. The information is backdated to the actual date the person started exhibiting symptoms or the date the person died.

Gov. Mike DeWine’s next scheduled coronavirus briefing from the statehouse is set for Tuesday.

The governor started Thursday’s briefing discussing guidance for reopening K-12 schools. DeWine says we have an obligation to educate our children and keep them safe. Local control of our schools is important but state has an obligation to give children an education.

DeWine said they have developed guidelines each school should follow, but will also allow for schools to adjust to their situation.

Guidelines include:

• Assessing symptoms
• Washing and sanitizing hands to prevent spread
• Thorough cleaning of the school environment
• Practice social distancing
• Implement face coverings policy

Governor DeWine says the social distancing guidelines will certainly make things look different. He said some schools may stagger lunch times or even have modified schedules.

Teachers and staff members will be required to wear a face covering, unless it is unsafe for their job.

Children in third grade and up will be strongly encouraged to wear a mask.

To assist schools in their efforts to implement the guidelines, DeWine said the Ohio Department of Education created “The Reset and Restart Education Planning Guide for Ohio Schools and Districts” to help schools w/ solutions to the many challenges they face.

Governor DeWine says he intends to work with the General Assembly to come up with a plan to give schools monetary assistance from the CARES Act. He says it won’t be enough to cover all expenses, but they want to help as much as possible.

The governor said we are now moving into a phase where we must learn to live with the virus. He said, going forward, they will maintain baseline orders like distancing, businesses, etc. But a new “warning system” is coming.

Governor DeWine says this system will provide lawmakers and health officials with data from across the state. They will start looking at different regions of the state instead of the state as a whole.

A color coded system will be used to show the extent of virus spread in the state, according to DeWine.

• Alert Level 1 – Yellow – Counties triggering one or zero indicators. 53 counties are now at this level.
• Alert Level 2 – Orange – Counties trigger 2 or 3 indicators. 28 counties fall under this level.
• Alert Level 3 – Red – Counties trigger 4 or 5 indicators. 7 counties fall under this level.
• Alert Level 4 – Purple – Counties trigger 6 or 7 indicators. No counties are under this level, but Franklin County is approaching this phase.

The four levels will be determined by seven data points.

• New cases per capita
• Sustained increase in new cases
• Spread in not-congregate settings
• Sustained increase in emergency room visits
• Sustained increase in outpatient visits
• Sustained increase in COVID-19 hospital admissions
• ICU bed occupancy

Franklin County meets five of the seven indicators. There has been ‘explosive’ growth in new cases over the last 7 days. DeWine says the county is in danger of triggering all seven indicators.

He calls the dramatic rise in cases a ‘worrisome trend.’ DeWine said there is likely community spread in every county in the state.

The state’s contact tracers say the virus is spreading in large gatherings, in bars, restaurants and tourist destinations.

Lt. Gov. Jon Husted says they have had many questions about who has recovered and Thursday they are announcing that data point on the website. He says they will take the overall cases, subtract deaths and subtract cases developed in the last 21 days.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department on Monday released the names of more than 650,000 small businesses that received funds from a government program intended to support the economy as states shut down in April to contain the viral outbreak.

Treasury identified just a fraction of the total borrowers, naming only those companies that got more than $150,000. Those firms made up less than 15% of the nearly 5 million small companies that received loans.

The average loan amount for the entire program was $107,000, the Treasury Department said in a broad summary of the program. The government handed out $521 billion through the Paycheck Protection Program, a crucial piece of the government’s $2 trillion rescue package. The loans can be forgiven if the businesses mostly use the money to continue paying their workers. The program initially was set to expire June 30 but was extended last week to Aug. 8.

The recipients employed 51 million people before the pandemic began, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, or about 85% of all workers at companies with fewer than 500 employees. Not all of those jobs were saved. The government won’t know how many were until companies apply to have the loans forgiven, a process that is just beginning.

The public may never know the identity of more than 80% of the nearly 5 million beneficiaries to date because the administration has refused to release details on loans under $150,000. That secrecy spurred a lawsuit by news organizations including The Associated Press.

Treasury has released only dollar ranges for the loan amounts, rather than exact figures. Businesses owned by several politicians were listed among the recipients, including Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican.

DeWine Seeds-Silver Dollar Baseball received a loan in a range of $150,000 to $350,000, the government said. The company owns the Asheville Tourists, a minor league baseball team in North Carolina, which was purchased by the governor’s family in 2010. DeWine’s son, Brian DeWine, currently serves as president of the baseball team.

Robin J. Vos Enterprises, a popcorn manufacturing company run by Wisconsin GOP Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, received between $150,000 and $350,000. Vos’ spokeswoman, Kit Beyer, didn’t immediately respond to a message inquiring about why the company was seeking the money and how it’s been used.

And Waterville Valley Holdings, an investment group led by the family of New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, got a loan of between $350,000 and $1 million. The company is the principal investor in the Waterville Valley Resort, a ski area where Sununu, a Republican, served as CEO until just before he took office in 2017.

The data gave few details about loans to minority-owned businesses. Companies were not required to supply demographic data on their applications, and many entries about race and gender contained “unanswered.”

However, many minority-owned businesses don’t have employees, and so their loan amounts likely were under $150,000 and therefore not part of the data release. Senior administration officials who briefed reporters before the release said they hoped to get more information when owners submit applications for loan forgiveness over the next few months.

Treasury still was able to determine that 27% of the loan money went to low- and moderate-income areas, the officials said.

The PPP was up and running just days after being approved by Congress in late March. It provided loans of up to $10 million for small businesses to help them recover from the government-ordered shutdowns and revenue losses caused by the virus outbreak. The ability to convert the loans to grants made the program particularly appealing.

Once opened April 3, the PPP sparked a flood of applications from desperate small business owners. The SBA approved more than 1.6 million loans worth $349 million in less than two weeks, exhausting the initial funding. Millions of other businesses had to wait nearly two more weeks for Congress to approve an additional $310 million. Nearly 3.2 million loans worth $172 billion were approved in the second round as of June 30, leaving around $132 billion unclaimed. Congress approved an extension of the program this week until Aug. 8.

Economists generally credit the program with helping prevent the job market meltdown from being much worse. Employers added 7.5 million jobs in May and June, a solid increase though it left the economy with nearly 15 million fewer jobs than before the pandemic. Many economists credit the PPP with driving some of that gain.

Yet other analyses, such as one conducted by economists at Standard & Poors, found that businesses in states with fewer job losses received more loans than those in harder-hit states.

LONDON, Ohio (WCMH)– The London Police Department is asking for the public’s help finding a man they say was involved in a stabbing Monday morning.

They are looking for 31-year-old Justin Curtis (pictured below). Police say they have issued an arrest warrant for felonious assault for Curtis.

• 31-year-old Justin Curtis wanted by London PD on suspicion of felonious assault.
  PHOTO: London PD
• 31-year-old Justin Curtis wanted by London PD on suspicion of felonious assault.
  PHOTO: London PD

If you know his whereabouts, please call 740-852-1414.

WESTERVILLE, Ohio (WCMH)–The city manager of Westerville, David Collinsworth, signed an executive order making it easier for businesses to enforce face coverings (masks) in public spaces within the city’s borders. The order goes into at 8 AM Wednesday, July 8.

“Public health experts and the CDC maintain that COVID-19 remains very much active with cases increasing steadily statewide and that the use of face coverings can save lives,” David Collinsworth said in a news release. “It is imperative that we continue to heed the warnings and best practices to help limit the spread of this virus.”

Westerville Face Mask Executive-Order-2020-01.Download

The order allows businesses to trespass individuals who do not wear face coverings.

The ordinance was to respond to Franklin County’s designation of Risk Level 3 under Governor DeWine’s established Public Health Advisory System, and acknowledges neighboring communities passing similar legislation.

Exempt from the order are children eight-years-old and younger, people with medical and mental conditions, customers at restaurants and bars when consuming food and drink.

Coronavirus in Ohio resources:

• Ohio K-12 schools closed for the remainder of the academic year
• Latest news, live updates on coronavirus in Ohio
• Should I get tested for COVID-19?
• Give or get help in Ohio
• Subscribe to daily newsletter
• Download the NBC4 app

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DUBLIN, Ohio (WCMH) — As COVID-19 cases climb statewide, more Central Ohio cities are rolling out their own safety measures. Monday, Dublin became the sixth local municipality to issue a face mask requirement.

Dublin city manager Dana McDaniel’s executive order took effect in the days following similar measures from Bexley, Columbus, Whitehall, Westerville, and Grandview Heights. Upper Arlington’s City Council planned to consider a mask mandate during a special meeting Monday evening.

McDaniel said the mandate’s primary goal is to protect everyone’s safety and prevent the city’s businesses from future COVID-related closures. 

Masks have been required at many businesses before the mandate, including North High Brewing Company, where worker Adam Bolen called it a common sense safety measure.

“I hope everyone gets on the same page so we can maybe get past this quicker,” he said.

Critics of mask mandates have voiced concerns about government overreach, but others think it’s necessary to make face coverings a requirement.

“Whatever needs to be done, needs to be done. It needs to be controlled,” said Rick DeShone.

Cindi Warner added, “It’s pretty bad if you have to do mandates. It’s pretty easy to understand – put a mask on.”

The Dublin mandate requires almost everyone to cover their nose and mouth in indoor public spaces and outdoors when social distancing is difficult. The rule does include several exceptions for individuals with disabilities or medical conditions, children under age 6, people actively eating or drinking, engaging in strenuous exercise or undergoing dental or medical procedures and those whose religious beliefs prohibit face coverings.

The city manager said violators can be subject to a third-degree misdemeanor, though the city’s first priority will be to educate about the importance of masks.

The mandate will stay in effect until the State of Emergency is lifted or it is otherwise modified by another executive order.

You can read the full text of the Dublin mask requirement here.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Matt Barnes had the opportunity to sit down with four non-white officers of the Columbus Police Department. One of the many topics covered in that conversation was their initial reaction to the George Floyd video.

“I know the things that our staff teaches us. We have ongoing training and that’s not part of what we are taught and learned,” said Officer Ed Chung, who has been with CPD for five years.

“Not to mention there were more than one officer that were involved in that and I don’t think one Columbus Police Officer would have stood around and allowed that to happen,” Officer Lisa McKissick, a 23-year veteran of the police force explained. “I think we would’ve jumped in, what are you doing, what’s going on here, and gotten him off of that.”

Officer George White, who has spent 15 years with CPD described his first response, “It was hard for me to watch. When I initially saw the video, I almost wanted to jump inside the video and push this guy off of this guy. And even the follow-up care was totally wrong.”

You will hear much from Matt’s sitdown with those officers this Thursday, July 9, as NBC4 airs another installment of “The Conversation.”

“The Conversation” is a live, one-hour conversation about working towards racial equality in our community. And we want to hear from you! Record a video about how you’re feeling and email it to us at theconversation@wcmh.com.

DUBLIN, Ohio (WCMH) — The organizers of the Memorial Tournament announced Monday that no fans will be allowed to attend when the event begins on July 14.

The event’s pro-am is also cancelled.

“We applaud the leadership, diligence and partnership it took from Jack Nicklaus, Dan Sullivan, the entire Memorial Tournament staff and State, County and City leadership to build a solid plan that would allow for limited fan attendance at next week’s event,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan. “But given the broader challenges communities are facing due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we need to stay focused on the No. 1 priority for our Return to Golf — the health and safety of all involved.  While this was a difficult decision, it was one made collectively, and we are appreciative of the process undertaken to this point that will allow us to welcome on-site fans when the time is right.  In the meantime, we have no doubt that the Memorial Tournament will once again be an incredible championship and deliver the best competitive environment for our players and utmost entertainment to our fans around the world.”

CLEARWATER, Fla. (WFLA) – A man is in critical condition and another person was seriously injured after they were struck by lightning on Clearwater Beach Sunday, police said.

The strike happened around 2:15 p.m. at the end of Somerset Street, halfway between the waterline and the dunes, after a line of storms moved onshore from the Gulf of Mexico.

Police arrived at the beach to find Arkadiusz Gacek of Des Plaines, Illinois, unresponsive.

Gacek, 37, was taken to Morton Plant Hospital in critical condition.

Police said Sav Keomany, 43, of Pickerington, Ohio was a few feet away from Gacek when they were struck. Keomany was hospitalized in stable condition.

Police said both victims were trying to leave the beach when the incident happened.

Further information was not immediately available.

ATHENS COUNTY, OH (WOWK) — Two people were on felony drug charges in Athens County.

James M. Barr, 37, and Cinnamon T. Poholsky, 20, both of Glouster, were arrested on July 3, 2020, for alleged aggravated possession of drugs and aggravated trafficking in drugs, both a first-degree felony. Additional charges are being requested pending lab results.

The arrests came when The Criminal Interdiction Units conducted a traffic stop on Route 33 for a head light violation.

During the stop, alleged suspicious behavior were observed by officers and a K9 was requested. 

Ohio State Highway Patrol responded and deployed a K9. A search was conducted of the vehicle and approximately 2.8 ounces or (80) grams of suspected heroin, suspected methamphetamine, and schedule four prescription narcotics were located and seized.

The traffic stop comes also after a lengthy investigation into drug trafficking at a Martin Road, Glouster address. 

A $200,000 bond was requested for Barr and a $100,000 bond was requested for Poholsky.

The estimated street value of the seized heroin from this traffic stop is $16,000.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)– The Columbus Metropolitan Library will be closing all of their branch doors again due to the recent uptick in COVID-19 cases in Franklin County.

The library has suspended the limited services they were offering inside some branches as part of its phased reopening and will now return to an all curbside pickup system.

“The move comes in response to recent increases in COVID-19 cases in Franklin County and warnings from Gov. Mike DeWine and public health officials,” the library said in a press release.

CLICK HERE to read more about the decision and how to utilize their curbside pickup system.

Coronavirus in Ohio resources:

• Ohio K-12 schools closed for the remainder of the academic year
• Latest news, live updates on coronavirus in Ohio
• Should I get tested for COVID-19?
• Give or get help in Ohio
• Subscribe to daily newsletter
• Download the NBC4 app

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)– People in around a half dozen apartments are displaced due to a Monday morning fire on Columbus’ east side.

Columbus Division of Fire officials say no one was injured in the fire at 1230 Stone Ridge Dr. and everyone evacuated safely.

Officials at the scene say the fire started in back of lower level apartment and spread upstairs.

The Red Cross is assisting displaced residents.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – The Ohio Department of Health has released an interactive map showing COVID-19 testing sites in the state.

The map shows a combination of private companies and retail sites, community health centers, and pop-up sites that offer testing. 

Looking for a map with #COVID19 testing sites in Ohio? Find our interactive map here: https://t.co/bqBb0ho1MV #InThisTogetherOhio #ResponsibleRestartOhio pic.twitter.com/ZsjVNPA3Ur

— Ohio Dept of Health (@OHdeptofhealth) July 5, 2020

The map shows sites in every county in Ohio. You can search by county or postal code.

Visit these sites to learn more about retail screening requirements:

CVS

Kroger

Rite Aid

Walmart

To learn about upcoming pop-up tests, visit the link below:

Pop-Up Testing sites

Many sites require a pre-screening process, so make sure you check before going.

Coronavirus in Ohio resources:

• Ohio K-12 schools closed for the remainder of the academic year
• Latest news, live updates on coronavirus in Ohio
• Should I get tested for COVID-19?
• Give or get help in Ohio
• Subscribe to daily newsletter
• Download the NBC4 app

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)– There is a new Facebook Watch Show called “Boost my Business,” and one locally-owned small, minority business was chosen to be featured.

It was an experience that not only helped their business grow during this unfortunate time but showed them their full potential.

One of the co-owners of Bake Me Happy in Merion Village has celiac, and she had trouble finding foods for her diet. She decided to start her own gluten free bakery. Now, five years later, this small business is thriving with the help of Facebook and of course the support from the community.

“They called and said were coming out the week after thanksgiving we were like oh okay,” explained Bake Me Happy Co-Owner, Letha Pugh.

Facebook and Instagram chose Letha Pugh and Wendy Miller Pugh to feature on this new show. They brought in crews, experts and a celebrity host, Tan France. 

“I was excited because I’m a fan several of my bakers are fans.” 

Tan is one of the Fab five from Queer Eye. He worked with owners on ways to grow their business with some simple marketing tips.

After the show was filmed, COVID-19 had to pivot their entire business model. They did it without hesitation. 

“The  way that restaurants have to function over the next two years will be drastically different. This model has exponentially increased what we’re doing,” noted Pugh.

They created an online ordering system that allows people to order ahead so there is as little contact as possible. With the tools they learned from Facebook and being forced into functioning online, they are now growing during a time when most are hanging on by a thread. 

“It was a big deal for us,” noted Miller Pugh “It was wonderful! It was two days of shooting. It was intense but he was every bit of wonderful as you want him to be. When you’re working so hard in your business it’s easy to be in a bubble and not see how great you’re doing.”

These two women have some advice for any other business owners struggling right now amidst Covid-19: “Keep fighting, keep rethinking your business,” explained Miller Pugh.

And at the end of the episode, they caught up with Tan to see how they’ve been doing during the pandemic. One thing they decided to do is eliminate their cafe seating completely and they are working on a bodega like setup with all gluten free products, alcohol and treats.

CLICK HERE to watch the show.

COLUMBUS QUICK FORECAST

• Today: Mostly sunny, very hot, humid afternoon. High 95
• Tonight: Partly cloudy, muggy morning. Low 72
• Tuesday: Mostly sunny, few storms. High 93
• Wednesday: Hot, sticky, scattered p.m. storms. 73/94
• Thursday: Partly sunny, steamy, stray storms later. 72/93

FORECAST DISCUSSION:

The Ohio Valley is covered by a big ridge of high pressure. So it will be another hot and humid day with highs in the mid-90s again. Yesterday we hit 96-degrees.

Today is also an Air Quality Alert Day. Levels of ozone in Central Ohio may rise in the Unhealthy For Sensitive Groups range. Anyone with breathing issues including children, the elderly, with asthma or COPD should limit their time or strenuous activity outdoors.
Tonight the sky will clear again but it will be another warm and humid night. Temperatures will drop into the low-70s, but it will take all night before it is even that cool.

The rest of the week will be hot and humid with afternoon storms popping up especially with peak daytime heating, which will continue to be in the 90s. With a frontal passage some storms may be heavier Friday, but that does mean we will be able to drop a few degrees this weekend.

-Bob

COLUMBUS (WCMH) – The current heatwave can be dangerous for those who are older.

A Columbus non-profit is trying to make sure seniors are safe in the extreme heat.

Lifecare Alliance does this kind of work every year, but this weekend, the work has been especially important.

With hot day after hot day, and more in the forecast, Lifecare is trying to keep seniors as cool and as safe as possible.

As the organization delivers meals, it is also delivering fans.

The July heat is in full effect.

“We’re really roasting here right now,” said resident Lynda Zielinski. “I have air conditioning in the apartment, but it’s not very efficient, so on a really hot day like today, you don’t feel much.”

When Lifecare Alliance showed up at her door Sunday, meals weren’t the only thing delivered.

Lifecare Alliance’s weekend driver supervisor Celia Elkins also came with a fan. It’s part of the non-profit’s annual fan campaign to collect and get fans to seniors to help them deal with the summer heat.

So far this year, about 300 fans have been handed out.

“There’s a lot, a lot of fans going out,” Elkins said.

With the heat expected to stick around, the fans are much needed.

“It’s so hot and there’s a lot of seniors out there that are living in apartments that don’t have air conditioning or the air conditioning doesn’t work or works slow,” Elkins said. “We want to keep them cool and healthy the best we can do.”

Zielinski is thankful every time Lifecare shows up at her door. This time, even moreso.

“The fan is great, it’s really nice,” she said. “At night, if you’re trying to sleep, to have that breeze, kind of close your eyes and pretend you’re on the seashore and get some nice breeze. So yeah, it’s very nice.”

An air quality alert will be in place for central Ohio Monday, and with more heat expected to last through the week, Lifecare will be handing out more fans.

Residents who would like to donate are encouraged to drop off new fans at their local fire departments. For more information, check out Lifecare Alliance’s website.

WESTERVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) – The search continues for a Westerville woman who has been missing for six weeks.

Emily Noble, 52, was last seen on May 24.

On Sunday, a group of friends and others close to her gathered at the Scioto Mile for a candlelight vigil.

The vigil was held there because organizers said Noble loved taking pictures at the park.

She was known to frequent other Columbus area parks as well.

Westerville Police have searched several areas around town.

“I’m hoping that we can find her,” said Wendy Carney-Hatch, who was at Sunday’s vigil. “If anyone knows anything and they’ve been hesitant to come forward about that they’re willing to come forward, now.” 

Emily was last seen at her home near County Line Road and State Road in Westerville on May 25.

Emily is a white woman, approximately 5-feet tall and weighing approximately 100 pounds. She has naturally curly brown hair and brown eyes.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Westerville Police at 614-901-6881.